Trump and Birthers

As you know, we’ve been inundated by the media over the claim that Barack Obama was not born in the United States, and is thus ineligible to be president. Though I believe he is unqualified to be president for a whole host of reasons, I think this whole “birther” stuff is nonsense and a non-issue, and, yes, I think the president was born in the old US of A.

Birther is a derogatory term for anyone who thinks the president is not a US citizen. It’s used by the media to denigrate anyone who may have legitimate questions about Obama’s citizenship. I think it’s pretty fair to say that the mainstream media treats Obama with kid gloves, carries his water, and can be described with just about any other cliché you can think of inferring that they are in his corner. (Didja like what I just did there?)

But we all know this.

Now: Trump.

I must admit to a certain vicarious thrill with Donald Trump. But don’t jump to conclusions. I think he would be a complete, undeniable disaster for this country if he ever got elected to the presidency. The man has shady morals which he aligns to whatever way the wind is blowing. He is an unabashed, unashamed egoist who never admits when he is wrong or when he makes a mistake. He often comes across as a belligerent, my-way-or-the-highway type of, well, jerk. In other words, someone who, by virtue of always having unlimited and vast amounts of money, expects others to bend to his every whim.

(As a side note, my father-in-law once made an observation that every rich man always thinks someone is currently conspiring – at this very moment! – to steal his money. Based on my experience, I tend to agree.)

So what’s my delight in listening to Trump day in and day out on the news?

I love the fact that now, finally, Obama is starting to get some flak by someone who has a public pulpit. This really hasn’t happened before; see the second half of the second paragraph above. The president is finally getting something somewhat reminiscent of the Bush treatment, albeit not from the 24-7 media but from some very vocal fringe political opponent.

One thing that really steams me is gas prices. You too, I bet. I remember just three or four years ago the daily hammering of President Bush over creeping increases in gas prices. Every day, every hour, every newscast, all we heard was how the price of gas was reaching four dollars a gallon and how that was going to destroy America, destroy families, destroy the economy. And a dozen times a day we were told how Bush is bungling it, botching it, failing to lead and preserve the union by failing to reduce the average price of a gallon of gas.

In the two years Obama’s been president, the average price of gas has risen 110%, from something like $1.83 a gallon to $3.90. The response from the mainstream media?

Crickets.

So I am enjoying immensely Trump’s hounding and badgering and pounding of this disaster of a president. But even though I am looking forward to observing the president and his people squirm as Donald now goes after his college records, it is approaching the point of diminishing returns. Trump is still useful, though, because, like Obama’s monthly vacations, anything that keeps the president distracted from pursuing his ineffective and disastrous economic policies is a good thing.

However, I think Trump will need to go away in about six months time. I agree with conservative pundits who are mostly aghast with his positions, even the economic ones where Trump supposedly should be treated with awe and reverence because he was able to take his father’s money and convert it into billions of dollars.

In an ideal world, I wouldn’t want to see Trump on the same stage with other Republican candidates during the debates and primaries next year. But I would love – absolutely love – those same candidates to speak with such confident tell-it-like-it-is authority and completely go on the offensive against this Jimmy Carter we currently have sitting in the oval office.